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ALC appoints new principal after student agitation, Joshi goes on leave
A circular issued to students, a copy of which was obtained by HT on Monday, confirmed the appointment
Army Law College (ALC), Pune, has appointed Ganeshappa Rudrappa Deshmane, assistant professor of Law, as the officiating principal effective from August 30. The move follows the decision of Madhushree Mandar Joshi, the former principal, to proceed on leave after a series of student protests.
A circular issued to students, a copy of which was obtained by HT on Monday, confirmed the appointment. The order was signed by the registrar and head of administration, Col. Suneel Mann (Retd.), on Saturday.
This decision comes after weeks of student unrest on the ALC campus. Around 300 students had staged protests earlier last month, accusing Joshi of harassment, arbitrary decision-making, and mismanagement. The students also alleged that faculty members were being made to teach outside their areas of expertise, academic schedules were frequently disrupted, and the statutory Student Council had been dissolved, violating regulations set by Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU).
The students’ demands included the removal of the principal, action against the registrar, reinstatement of the Student Council, and the establishment of an independent grievance redressal mechanism.
The matter was escalated to SPPU, which directed ALC to submit a report on how the grievances were being addressed. However, the first report submitted on August 25 was rejected by the university for being vague and lacking details on how the issues would be resolved.
The appointment of Deshmane as officiating principal is being seen as the first step toward restoring normalcy at the college. Despite repeated attempts, Deshmane did not respond to calls for comment.
